Sarabia: Tuchel tinkering no excuse for PSG´s defeat to Reims

Pablo Sarabia insists injury-enforced changes were no excuse for Paris Saint-Germain’s surprise 2-0 loss to Reims in Ligue 1.

The champions lost a home league match for the first in 16 months as their visitors capitalised upon a lacklustre display – substitute Boulaye Dia sealing the points in stoppage time after Hassane Kamara’s first-half opener.

Head coach Thomas Tuchel made five changes to his starting XI and was without the likes of Julian Draxler, Edinson Cavani, Kylian Mbappe and Mauro Icardi, but former Sevilla winger Sarabia felt there was still ample quality to get the job done.

“It was a game in which we could not find any space, we were unable to knock the ball about with the right pace, and then they penalised us on the break,” he told reporters.

“They [Tuchel’s rotations] are top-level changes as every player coming in can do very well. Unfortunately, today we were not able to find the way to hurt our opponents.”

22 – Reims are the first team to win against Paris at the Parc des Princes in Ligue 1 since Rennes in May 2018 (2-0). PSG were unbeaten in their last 22 home games in the top-flight (W20 D2). Exploit. pic.twitter.com/0fqVyEOMLk

— OptaJean (@OptaJean) September 25, 2019

An injury to Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting saw Sarabia pressed into action as an emergency number nine.

“I will play wherever the manager decides,” he said. “The team needed me to play there so I tried to do my best, by playing on the spaces and trying to stretch our opponents. I tried to do my best.”

It meant Sarabia was flanked in the front three by Neymar and Angel Di Maria – somewhat underlining his point that PSG should have made their quality tell.

“It makes me feel honoured and excited as we have a fantastic quality on the pitch,” he added.

“We need to learn how to hurt the opponents as that is why we all are here.”

PSG remain top of Ligue 1, although only by virtue of goal difference from Angers, and travel to Bordeaux on Saturday.